Chocola woke up with the first rays of sun. Quickly, she sneaked into the bathroom and freshened herself up. There were a few hours until their place opened, so Chocola planned to spend that time in the library.

As she tried to sneak through the front door, she heard Vanilla's voice.

"And where do you think you are going?" Vanilla asked with a slight disappointment in her voice.

"Library!" Chocola replied.

"What for?" Vanila was inquisitive.

"I offered to clean the place; it was very dusty." Chocola quickly made up the reason.

"You're a terrible liar." Vanilla interrupted.

"I want to read some books." This time, she told the truth.

"Why? Every time you read a book, you end up crying for hours." Vanilla added.

Vanilla was, of course, correct. Chocola went quiet, and her emotions became visible on the face she just washed. She was her sister, but she was just so good at reading her.

"Want to spend the day off? Just two of us." Vanilla was finally offered.

"Where would we go?"

"A forest. A real forest. Fresh air might help you clear out your mind."

Chocola hesitated but finally nodded. Perhaps her sister really knew what she needed. Vanilla took a few more minutes to clean her face and put on shoes. She also picked up a big basket and a knife. Finally, they both were outside and went towards the edge of the town.

"What's the basket for?" Chocola asked.

"Let's pick some mushrooms. Nyaa :3" The sister replied with a wide smile on her face. She seemed to really love mushrooms.

They reached the forest. It was dark and dense. The ground was covered in moss, and it felt so soft under their feet. The smells were pleasant and earthy. It was sunny above the trees, and the rays that did penetrate the leafy roof were just so divine.

Chocola looked around and saw some blueberry-like shrubs. They had gray, cloudy-looking beries. There were multiple types of mushrooms, big and small, including the kind that grows on dead trees. But they all looked so different from anything Mawy had seen in her own world.

"What kind of mushrooms should we pick?" She asked.

"Dunno, actually. There should not be any toxic ones around here, so let's pick a bunch and see how they taste."

Chocola did not wait and rushed towards the fallen tree. There was a big mushroom growing right out of it. There were other mushrooms, but this one attracted her attention because it looked the most normal.

She picked one up and was ready to give it a taste, but Vanilla stopped her and took the mushroom out of her hands.

"You said they were not toxic?!"

"They aren't. They are, however, cursed."

"Cursed?!" Chocola was surprised.

"Wait, you really don't know, do you?" Most plants here are cursed. You need to boil them or ask merchants to remove the curse." Vanilla sounded quite serious.

"First time I hear about it." Chocola looked truly surprised.

"Like a proper house cat~" Her sister teased her, and Chocola felt annoyed. She made an annoyed expression too.

"So, what does the curse do?" Finally, her curiosity won.

"The one you picked changes your age."

"Wait, really?! Older or younger?!" Chocola was amazed.

Stolen story; please report.

"Dunno, you have it in your hands. What's the first number that comes to mind?"

Chocola briefly remembered yesterday's notes on magic. This was such a strange world. She started into the mushroom and tried to think of the age. And suddenly, a memory appeared. It was not a number, but a vision. She saw herself as an old grandmother. With white kitty ears and so many wrinkles on her face. The vision immediately scared her, and the mushroom slipped through her fingers onto the ground.

Vanilla picked up the mushroom and placed it in the basket.

"Cooking removes all curses; it's completely safe to eat them."

Chocola was still shocked. Just to clear her head, she picked up another mushroom, a much smaller one. The cap was still white. She stared into it and saw herself again, this time as a tiny kid. It was a pleasant sight, and more importantly, it cleared the old mirror reflection out of her head.

"Wait, wait, if people here can eat mushrooms to become young again, does that mean…" Chocola suddenly realized this.

"The locals? They still age, but they can rejuvenate themselves by eating raw mushrooms. Death is optional for them. But it's not just mushrooms; berries and vegetables are cursed too. I heard there's a berry that makes you grow big, wolfy ears. Eat two for a tail and five for a full wolf. However, I don't think they grow on this continent."

"Wow, really?!" Chocola gasped.

"Yep. "

"I saw berries some time ago. Was it cursed too?"

"The ugly gray ones? I don't know, but we have a book at home that lists all the local plants and their curses. I can show it to you."

Chocola was speechless. There was so much magic around, and yet she knew so little. Even Vanilla, who was not that much into magic, knew more than her. It was embarrassing, but in a cute, childish way.

She went towards the berry bush and decided to pick a few, purely for research purposes. What if they turn out to do what she wants them to do? She tried to imagine what it did, but Chocola could not read their magic. With mushrooms, it was easy because she knew what they did, but with berries, she had no idea.

"Chocola, don't pick those. If they were tasty, I would know about them."

Chocola dropped attention from the berry bush and looked around for mushrooms, jumping from one corner to another. She was meticulous, reinvigorated by the mere idea of such casual magic. She would pick a handful of various mushrooms, bring them to Vanilla, and ask what their curse was. Vanilla did not know the answer, but she happily placed them in the basket.

Vanilla then figured it would be easier if she simply let Chocola do all the picking while she stayed in the middle of it all. Vanilla moved slightly, and Chocola simply cleaned the circle around her.

Eventually, they reached a small river. Vanilla removed her shoes and stockings, sat on the grassy bank, and dipped her feet in the water. Chocola stared into the basket, it was already full. She saw Vanilla sitting peacefully and decided to give her a few minutes.

Chocola found another berry bush and picked one berry from it. Once again, she stared into the berry, trying to figure out what it did. She knew she could read a curse if she knew what it did, and curses generally cause various transformations, so she simply had to find the right one. She thought about dogs, foxes, wolves, snakes, and nearly any other animal, and none of them triggered the magical response. Yet finally, she thought about an angel, and something in her imagination responded. She saw herself as an angel catgirl with such beautiful white wings. Just for fun, she tried to imagine herself as a demon girl, and the magic responded again.

She wondered how a single curse could grant both rather opposite effects, but she decided it was better to simply ask Vanilla later on.

"Aren't your feet cold?" Chocola asked, staring at the stream. In the distance, she could see snowy mountains, so she assumed the water was freezing.

"It is, but it's a really pleasant way to recharge myself. Wanna try dipping your feet too?"

Chocola dipped her finger into the water and shook her head. Vanilla then quickly shook her feet dry and dressed up. They went home.

"I actually figured out what the berry does!" Chocola announced, extremely happy and proud of herself.

"You did?!"

"Kinda. I know it turns you into an angel or a demon; I know it is one of those, but I don't know which." A sparkle appeared in Chocola's eye, and Vanilla paused to stare at her curious sister. After a few seconds, Chocola figured it out and started blushing, at which point her sister knew she had to say a word.

"Ah! I know it then! It is a divine berry." Vanilla tried to match Chocola's spark, but it was not as successful.

"Divine berry?"

"Yup! We had one incident. With Cacao. Well, not the current Cacao, but the previous one! A real mess!" Vanilla explained, teasing.

"Please tell me!" Chocola's spark grew brighter.

"So, well, it's a strange berry. Indeed, as you have guessed, it turns you into an angel or a demon, but whichever it is depends on your soul. And you can't really control it or know your worth. So, the cute Cacao decided to be a demon—you know, cute spaded tail and all." Vanilla spoke, and Chocola stopped walking, ears wiggling in curiosity.

"So she squished the berries, then invited everyone into the kitchen. Hahaha, look at how evil I am, she said with an evil smirk and then drunk it. A pair of white wings grew behind her. Her hair turned white too. As she realized that was happening, she panicked, and her face became demonic red from embarrassment.

"And what happened next?!"

"Well, the magical girl came and fixed things up. Well almost. Cacao still had a massive blush for days to come. That was impossible to fix. Besides, other catgirls teased her about the incident too."

"Wait, wait, waiiit, you said 'previous' Cacao. Did the magical girl boot her out?" Chocola asked, slightly worried.

"No no. Incidents happen, the magical girl said. But Cacao did return. I can't tell you why, but I can tell you it had nothing to do with the transformation."

"I see." Chocola smiled.

Peacefully, they walked back home. It was about time to open the bakery. Initially, the plan was to take a day off, but the truth is, there was no need to…